We all love Hugh Jackman. Everyone and their grandma can’t help but to fall for the Jackman charm. He exudes goodness in a town defined largely by bad behavior. He’s one of the good guys, which is why he’s the perfect man to play one of the bad guys. In the new HBO film, Bad Education, Jackman uses his public persona as the ultimate weapon.
What is Bad Education?
Jackman is a silent but deadly threat as Frank Tassone, a Long Island school superintendent with a broad smile hiding sinister motives. Based on a true story, Tassone stole millions from taxpayers and the school system. How’d he get away with it? Mostly, with charm. Directed by Cory Finley (Thoroughbreds), Bad Education is a chilling tale about a sociopath. It’s American Psycho in the suburbs.
Everybody Loves Frank
Everybody loves Frank. Nobody could ever fathom the man in the nice suits, with a pleasant smile, and the “dream big” attitude could do such a horrible thing. He uses charm to hide his true self. For the first act of Bad Education, Jackman makes the audience feel like his co-workers and students: you’re won over by his charisma. He makes people feel good about themselves and believe in themselves, strategically. Even when the cracks in his mask first appear, you still want to see the good in this very charming, seemingly caring man. Slowly, the story chillingly reveals his true nature and, like his friends and co-workers, you feel betrayed for giving him the benefit of the doubt.
Who is Frank?
It’s an incredible, career-defining performance from Jackman. He raises so many questions and creates such a sense of mystery around Frank for a large portion of Bad Education. There are moments where we see goodness in Frank, but is it always manufactured? Is there anything inside this greedy, sociopathic man that is real? No, but most of Bad Education, you still want to see that side of the character come alive. It’s never going to, but you desperately want it to.
The World’s Greatest Showman
Frank is a huckster, which is why the man who played the world’s greatest showman was the perfect actor for the part. Jackman is, above all else, a showman, just like Frank. It’s a perfect marriage between role and performer. Charisma is Jackman’s bread and butter, again, just like Frank. Everything that’s pure about the performer and public persona gets twisted to stunning results in Bad Education.
Jackman’s History of Darkness
Jackman is far more than his nice guy persona, though. It’s hardly the only brand of character he’s played. In the past, whenever Jackman goes to the darkside, that’s when we see him at his most magnetic. Arguably, that’s even true for his portrayal of Wolverine, but in The Prestige, Prisoners, and a movie directed by a disgraced director I won’t name, the actor exudes a distinct intensity entirely of his own.
Jackman is a big guy, so if he wants to intimidate someone, whether a co-worker or even a student in this case, it’s frightening. But it’s that charm, that likability, that charisma that makes him so much more than a standard villain, not his size. There’s something about that classic and, more importantly, genuine movie star smile that makes a villain all the more frightening. Jackman is one of the good guys, but after Bad Education, he’s now one of our favorite bad guys.
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